AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,160,000 shares, an increase of 10.5% from the December 15th total of 2,860,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 616,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AVB. Mizuho upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Scotiabank cut their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price objective for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,367,689.33. This represents a 21.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AvalonBay Communities

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVB. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Mather Group LLC. lifted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 59.9% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 478 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

AVB traded up $0.31 during trading on Monday, reaching $218.21. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 553,916 shares, compared to its average volume of 517,710. The company has a market capitalization of $31.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $224.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $220.81. AvalonBay Communities has a 52-week low of $169.37 and a 52-week high of $239.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.10). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 8.84%. The business had revenue of $734.31 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $731.67 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 93.02%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.